My first chalk paint project!

Hi y'all!  It has been forever and a day since I've had time to get crafty around the house!  I'm finally getting back to working on things around here.  I've started painting the hallway, and the kitchen will be next. Then David's room will get a major overhaul.  Oh, and I have an AWESOME product to share with you - I will use it to replace my faux painted kitchen counters early in June.  But for now I want to show you my first chalk paint makeover!

It's a tiny little table that we got as a hand-me-down from family.  Our foyer is very small, so the table is a perfect fit for the little area right next to the front door.   I always have several candles on it, because you will almost always find candles lit in my house!  Right now there is also a set of mini prim houses I got all together in a bag at Goodwill for 99 cents.  One of my favorite thrift finds!  The table came to us with a few stains and water marks on the top, but the candles and mini houses kind of covered them up.

But, the table was the same color as the floors and that was starting to drive me crazy. The walls are brown, the floors are brown, the table.....you get the point! I'm trying to brighten things up here.  The current wall color - Sherwin Williams Library Pewter - used to be so cozy to me.  Now, it's cave-like and depressing! So we definitely need some color in this house.

David and I were at Countryside Antiques in Hoschton last month and I saw a display with this chalk paint, the soft wax and the brushes.  I figured it was a good time to makeover my table, so we bought them all.  I got the small (8 oz) container of paint because I've heard it doesn't take much chalk paint to complete projects. (Turns out this is true - I barely made a dent in this container after finishing the table.)

I know I am late getting on the chalk paint bandwagon.  I'd heard it was expensive.  I'd heard the wax was expensive and a lot of work.  But I also heard that it was so easy to work with - there was no prep work! Just clean the item and paint.  No sanding, no priming, no stripping the stain or paint already on your furniture. My sweet sister-in-law, Lia had used chalk paint with beautiful results and gave me her tips on using it, too.   So.....

When I got home, I brought the table upstairs, and cleaned it from top to bottom with soapy water and let it dry. And I took the before picture, too!  Using the new paint brush, I applied a light layer of the chalk paint.  (the color I used is Toile)   After it dried for about 30 minutes,  I added a second coat.   Next, I lightly distressed it in a few places with a sanding block I got at Dollar Tree.

I let it dry for a few minutes before I began the final step of waxing.  I got a little wax on the round wax brush, and pushed it onto the table and into all of its nooks and crannies -  top, legs, and sides included.  Then I just buffed it with a dry rag and voila - all done! I waxed, then buffed a small area before moving on to the next area. It took a while, but it was so worth the time I put into this project! I absolutely adore my "new" table!! It's like a little bit of the beach in my foyer - the light aqua color reminds me of Florida and the ocean.

I was pretty nervous to try my hand at chalk paint, but found that it is actually one of the easiest paints I've ever used, and the wax was simple to apply, too.  The finish on my table is soft and pretty. You don't see the brush marks, just a velvety look that is really lovely.  I can't wait to use these products again!

Next up, I will be making over a paper towel holder for D's bathroom. Paper towels are easier than a hand towel in a kiddo's bathroom! It is a dark, ugly wooden one from Goodwill.  I'm thinking of using Faux Real Mineral Paint in Bianca, a beige color, for it.  I want to use the dark wax on it, too. Stay tuned - I can't wait to see how it turns out!

I am including links to similar products on amazon if you are itching to get started on your own chalk paint projects! (affiliate links)  I especially love the bundle of three waxes - I spent $10 on just one color for mine - this is a much better deal and you get three colors!  They don't carry the same brand of chalk paint but this one in the Biloxi Shores color is very similar to the Toile color I used for my table.








If you've used chalk paint, share your favorite project in the comments below, or a link - I'd love to check them out!!

Thanks for stopping by!

Christmas Rag Garland ~ Easy Holiday Craft!!

Last night I felt the need to get crafty.  My inspiration for these Rag Garlands came from a $29.99 garland in the Country Door catalog.   I knew I had the supplies to make these for free!

I have a huge bin of holiday fabrics, so I found three Christmas fabrics I liked, plus some twine my husband had, and got to work!! I tore strips from the fabrics, then cut them into appx 5" strips.  I alternated the fabrics along the twine, tying them once and scooting them to the left.  I left a small loop on each end to hang it from.  I am THRILLED with my new Christmas garland and I've made a few more to sell at a Christmas festival in two weeks!  It takes about three hours to tie all of these strips on, and I had to tear/cut additional strips three times!  It's about five feet long, so I would need a few of these to wrap around the tree. 
 
Here are some pics/instructions if you would like to make a few of these yourselves!

Start out with a piece of twine a little longer than 5 feet - so you can make two loops and knot each end.

Here are some of the strips I already tore from my fabric, too....

Here's what I did to start my torn strips....just pick three or more fabrics that you like, and cut notches at the bottom.  I fold my fabric over so I get two strips per tear! Next, tear straight up the fabric - it will give you a long strip!!  After you tear them, measure to your liking and cut into smaller strips.  I folded my torn fabric strips into thirds and cut.  They were about 5"  long after I cut them.

Then start at one end and begin tying the strips on.  I do a single "knot" in the middle.  You will want to tear off any strings that appear after you cut your strips, too - just pull them off.  Some pieces may get a frayed look, and that's ok - it adds to the country charm of these garlands.  Just push pieces to the side after you tie them on, and keep them tightly together.    I have no idea how many strips I cut and tied, but it takes a good three hours (with tv watching to keep me going, lol!) to do one entire garland. 

And here is the first garland I made!  I used a couple different fabrics with this one.  I love them both, and have a couple more that are in progress! : )  Besides being fun to decorate your home, these would make great Christmas gifts, too! I am hoping I can sell a few of them at the Christmas festival - I'm going to ask $20 per garland I think!

 

How to organize your pantry!

About a month ago I found this organizer on pinterest.   I decided that Amy from Then She Made is a genius!! I have a cabinet-style pantry in the kitchen and it can get heavy on the cans - so I loved her idea of repurposing a carton from a 12 pack of soda into a can holder!  She used scrapbooking papers, which looks gorgeous, but I had a different idea.

You know I'm a chalkboard spray paint addict, right?!  See where this is going? First, I cut a small rectangle on the back of the top - to reload the cans. 

Then I gave each container a light coat of CB paint all over (I went a little heavier on the top - not so much on the sides, since noone will see them).  The front of each container got 3 coats of CB paint.  After they dried, I brought them inside and emptied my shelves, lol!

you can see the logo through the one coat of paint this got.  I don't care - it will be front-side out in my pantry, so no one will see it!  Cut a rectangle on the top back to drop more cans in as you buy them...

Next time I'll write on the front of them while empty, standing them on their ends.  It's alot harder to write on them from the front side when they are full! I have one for my soups (but my larger cans of soup don't fit in these), one for tomatoes (crushed, puree, small cans of sauce), and one for fruits.  I'll add more for veggies as I gather more of the cartons!   This project took less than 30 minutes and used items I already had on hand, so it was easy-peasy and super cheap!  If you try my version or Amy's please link back with a picture - I love to see what other crafty mamas out there make!

These fit my third pantry shelf perfectly and I think there is room for one more!

And while I'm at it - I am going to show off some of my recycled pantry helpers I got at Goodwill & cheap containers from Dollar Tree!   My Goodwill store has a whole aisle of kitchen helpers & gadgets, which often includes little wire shelves, plastic bins, lazy susans and more.  I stock up whenever I find them!

I've donated to D's school, my husband's food drive, plus taken things to my Nana so I have let my stockpile get low.  I'll be restocking it soon so I took advantage of my almost-empty pantry shelves to move things around today to organize a bit.  I pulled out two of my Goodwill three-tier shelves and a lazy susan (all 3 cost me under $5) and put them to work!   Double click on the pics for up close look...

This shelf holds items for baking.  Three tier shelf in back corner holds smaller baking ingredients, plus extracts and an extra salt grinder.  The container holding my cornmeal mix is from the dollar store - they come in a three pack and I love them!!

Next shelf down holds large soup cans, pasta sauces, olives, dressings, canned pasta, baby food purees (I add these to everything to give us extra veggies!) , bread crumbs and olive oil .  It also keeps my large mason jar that holds all of my cupcake liners! (It's too tall for my baking shelf, so I keep it on the one below). The lazy susan lets me find pizza sauce, dressings, canned chicken or condiments easily. 

Being organized doesn't have to cost a fortune, and you can recycle/repurpose a variety of things or use items from the thrift store or Goodwill to keep them out of the landfill!  I'm back on my Flylady routines starting this week, so getting my pantry back together ROCKS!

How to make decorative clothespins with scrapbook paper

Day whatever of still being sick. I can't talk without coughing, so I decided to hunker down at home and make something fun & easy! (so I'd feel like I got something done today...)

I love to use clothespins to close bags of chips, brown sugar, bread, whatever...they are easy to store & if I break one, it's not a big deal! (Back when I used to break those tacky plastic chip clips that cost a dollar or more apiece, that would make me feel like I wasted $$ ~ hate that!)

When I sold my soaps and other items online & at two local stores in 2009 -2010, these decorative clothespins (sold in sets of 6) were one of my best sellers!  I would make forty or fifty clips a day in big batches.  Then at the beginning of 2010 I stopped selling my items and slowly but surely, my supply of cute clips has dried up.  Today was the perfect day to replenish my junk drawer with a few more of these little cuties....

What you need:
newspaper to cover the table or surface you are working on
$1 bag of clothespins from Dollar Tree
scrapbook paper, decoupage tissue, ribbon, fabric - whatever!
mod podge (I like the matte version for these)
foam paint brush
scissors, pencil

Using the paper, tissue or fabric, I like to cut a rectangle (by eye, not measured) about twice as wide, and a smidge over the length of the first clothespin.  Then turn it over and trace one side of the clothespin.  Next to that tracing, flip the clothespin over and trace the other side.  Cut those two pieces out, lay aside.  Do the same for each clothespin you want to cover.  (Don't just cut the pieces all the same as the first pin - each pin differs slightly in size, width, etc.  It takes more time, but the final look is better if you trace every one separately!)  If using ribbon, cut a piece slightly longer than your clothes pin for each side.  I like to use a coordinating ribbon on the second side - fun to mix things up!

Brush the first side of clothespin with a layer of mod-podge.  Apply paper, fabric or tissue.  Smooth out any air bubbles, and  let dry.   Once dry,  apply a layer of mod podge over the top of the paper or fabric.  Let dry.  Repeat two more times.  Then, flip over and do the other side exactly the same!  (That is why I do at least 10, 20, or even 50 at a time because by the time I finish one side, it's time to do the next step on the first ones!)   For the ribbon covered clips only: once the final layer of mod podge is dry, trim the end of the ribbon to match the length of the pin.  With the mod podge on it, there should be no fraying!

Once they are dry, you can add a flower, button or ribbon accent to make it even cuter, but that is not necessary!   (on a side note - if you live in Atlanta, check out Scrapbook Clearance Center in Buford! EVERYTHING is half off there.  The tag on the back of each item is the original price, when you go to checkout, they take 50% off your total purchase - LOVE! These sticky-back buttons were only 99 cents a pack - I use them in scrapbooks and on cards too! The little spools of ribbon in the top picture were only 49 cents each! SCC is on Buford Drive, next to Plato's Closet - across Hwy 20 from the Mall of Georgia)

These look really cute on a bag of chips or pretzels - much more fun than a plastic clip that says "chip clip" across it!  I like to package 6 of them (in a coordinating paper or fabric) in a plastic bag tied with a ribbon to give as a little gift, too.  (Easy teacher gift!)

The 43rd Annual Yellow Daisy Festival is almost here!

Just got the press release about one of the best arts & crafts shows around , and wanted to share with my Atlanta readers!!  If you haven't been, you've got to check it out!

Celebrating its 43rd year, Stone Mountain Park’s Yellow Daisy Festival (YDF) is one of America’s favorite and most well-known arts and crafts festivals. Featuring more than 400 artists, YDF is consistently voted one of the nation’s top arts and crafts shows by Sunshine Artist Magazine’s Annual “200 Best” survey. This year’s show will be held September 8, 9, 10 and 11 at Stone Mountain Park’s Special Events Meadow.

The Yellow Daisy Festival features 425 crafters and artists from across the U.S. The artists are selected from a pool of applicants by the Yellow Daisy Jury to display their distinctive hand-made work in categories such as pottery, fabric, painting, jewelry, sculpture, dolls, photography, fine arts and crafts and traditional arts and crafts. “One of the best things about the Yellow Daisy Festival is seeing the same shoppers year after year,” said Wendy Thomas, Stone Mountain Park Special Events Manager. “Generations of women come in groups to spend the day shopping and socializing; it is a unique aspect of this event.”  The annual celebration attracts an estimated 200,000 shopping enthusiasts to the four-day event. The event draws multi-generational shoppers as a family pilgrimage to shop for the hot craft item of the year. 

In remembrance of the 10th anniversary of 9/11, select YDF crafters are donating a piece of their artwork to be sold in a “We Remember” display. All proceeds from these sales will go to HeroBox, a non-profit organization that supports deployed American service members. More information about HeroBox can be found at http://www.herobox.org/. 

New for 2011, Yellow Daisy Festival shoppers can also enjoy accommodations right inside Stone Mountain Park at Marriott Evergreen Conference Resort. Yellow Daisy Festival Girlfriend Getaway Packages start at $209 a night, include a one-night stay at the newly renovated Marriott Evergreen Conference Resort, breakfast and a meet and greet with this year’s featured artist.

The Yellow Daisy Festival selected chARiTy elise as the 2011 Featured Artist. Originally from Maine, Elise has travelled the globe and currently resides in Tucker, Ga. Her artwork features designs including flowers, leaves, the sun, wavy lines and geometric shapes. This year’s featured artwork is a kaleidoscope design using vibrant colored acrylics on a 19 inch round masonite board. A glowing yellow daisy is predominantly situated in the center of the design. Her artwork will be included on all promotional and marketing materials for this year’s festival.   “It seemed like a perfect kind of design for such a tremendously vibrant festival,” said Elise.

In addition to the unique arts and crafts, the festival offers entertainment for everyone in the family and festival foods to meet a variety of tastes. Throughout all four days of YDF, there will be live main stage entertainment including the JaneDear Girls. The JaneDear Girls are a new breed of country music. They will perform their hit song “Wildflower” Sunday evening. The Children’s Corner will provide crafts, entertainment, face painting and Fair Hair.  The Men’s Den is a great venue for the gentlemen coming to the event that don’t want to miss the big game. The Men’s Den is outfitted with recliners and big screen TVs showing fall football.

Guests may also visit the 40th Annual Yellow Daisy Flower Show at Memorial Hall.  The theme for the 2011 flower show is “Daisy…Fabulous at 40!”  The Yellow Daisy Flower Show runs from September 9-11. The flower show is sponsored by the Redbud District of the Garden Club of Georgia. 

Shoppers can stop by the Humana tent, the festival’s presenting sponsor, for free giveaways and to enter for a chance to win a Stone Mountain Park Annual Pass Package good for four (4) Mountain Memberships. For more information on the Yellow Daisy Festival, please visit http://www.stonemountainpark.com/.

Or watch a slideshow of the event at http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=09o9uN_IVbI. Listed in Frommer’s 500 Places to Visit with Your Kids Before They Grow Up and cited by the Atlanta Journal-Constitution as one of “35 Natural Wonders in Georgia You Must See Before You Die,” Stone Mountain Park is located 16 miles east of downtown Atlanta. 

To get to the park, take I-285 to Exit 39B, Hwy. 78 East.  Stone Mountain Park is Exit No.8 on Hwy 78. More information regarding Stone Mountain Park attractions and hours of operation is available at 770-498-5690 or by visiting http://www.stonemountainpark.com/.

How to make two easy picture frame projects

Last month we visited my Dad in North Carolina.  He is preparing for a move, and downsizing so he had lots of things for my brother, sister & me.  I drove up for the afternoon and the kids & I got to check out all the things he had to get rid of!! (Besides the boxed stuff for all of us).   He let us pick out what we wanted....

My favorite things I brought home were the picture frames!! If I could go back to that day, I'd have gotten more ~ Dad had literally hundreds of frames to get rid of.  I just grabbed a couple that caught my eye.   My favorites were two that had a blue, weathered finish and mats inside - one a light blue, one navy blue.  Once we got home, I tried a few pictures in them, but couldn't find any that really worked with the color of the frame.  What to do?




this frame had the navy blue mat, duh! The frames themselves are identical...

I had picked up some burlap to add to my fabric shelf, so I grabbed it, as well as a bag of old keys that Dad gave me a few years ago.  They belonged to my PaPa, & I've been dying to do something cool to display them!! So with a little time and a lot of glue - here is the result!  I'm going to keep adding keys to this to fill the holes....

Isn't it pretty? I like the bumpy texture and different colors in the burlap.  So perfect for summer!

So, now it's on to frame two.  While blogsurfing yesterday I saw a frame with pretty scrapbook paper in it being used as a dry erase board.  (SO sorry to not remember whose blog I saw that on ~ if it was yours, PLEASE leave a comment so I can give you credit!!)  That's what I decided to make.

Since mine had the mat, I decided to leave it in there and put my paper in the middle, like a picture.  I used a coordinating seahorse scrapbooking paper. Oh, how I LOVE this!!  And it was FREE ~ I had the burlap, the keys, the frame and the glue.  It's very summery & pretty!

Here's a not-so-great picture of it, sorry for the bad quality.  Try not to look at the mess in my craft room reflected in it, lol!!  There's a second picture where I wrote on it so you could see it in action!  I love that I will be able to change the paper on a whim ~ back to school paper, Halloween, Fall, Thanksgiving, Christmas ~ the possibilities are ENDLESS! This will be one piece of home decor I'll never tire of.  The price? FREE!!!  I had the frame, the paper and the dry erase marker. 

Hope you liked these easy-to-make wall decor projects!! What are some of your favorite free d.i.y. projects? 

Linking up with Not So Moody Monday Blog Hop and Made by You Monday.

How to decorate with sea shells

Sorry for the delay in posting new things! My daughter is doing great after her wisdom teeth were removed, but we did have a few rough days.  Getting back to our routine now... here is some frugal crafty goodness!

So, we arrived home from our beach getaway with SO MANY SHELLS! The kids each found bags of them, and I did too!  This is just a small selection of the shells we brought home!!

When we arrived home, I boiled them on the stove with a little bleach to kill any nasty germs that might have hitched a ride with them.  Then we spent a few days letting them dry out again. 

First, I put some on my mantle in one of my Williams-Sonoma knock off Hurricanes.   My Dad gave David a lovely model sailboat which I borrowed for the family room this summer, so my mantle was looking very beachy.  But I wanted to do something a little more unique, so I hit google for a bit!  My favorite idea was from this site -Becca painted her seashells with silver-y spray paint to look like their much more expensive Pottery Barn cousins...

So I decided to go that route.  Simple but elegant, showcasing the nooks & crannies of each shell with the gorgeous paint.   I followed her directions and looked for Krylon Chrome spray paint (she tested a few colors & found this to be the perfect color).

David & I hit up two stores on Sunday morning before we finally found that color, but it was Rust-o-leum brand.  (worked just fine, btw!)  Once home, David & I sorted the shells to find the ones we were willing to paint from our stash. (We're still planning a dollar store trip to get some more shells exclusively to paint!)    (ps ~ if you don't have a handle/sprayer thingie for your spray paint, you need to run get one - it makes it so much easier to get an even coat on anything you spray paint, and no more painted fingertips! I got mine for under $3 on Amazon.com) Here is the first batch of shells ~ I spraypainted each side, with about 15 minutes drying time, then turned them over and sprayed again!  Look for imperfect shells when you are choosing your shells to paint  (those with barnacles, holes, etc), they look so cool painted!

Aren't they lovely? I want to get more Starfish (and a couple sand dollars & sea biscuits) from Michael's to paint - LOVE how the textures really show up with the coat of paint! It's not as shiny as the shells because the starfish is so porous, but I really love the final result.

Right now they are hanging out inside one of my made-over Goodwill cheese domes - this one is painted Antique White. I tried taking a picture of these under the glass, but it didn't cooperate, so here ya' go!!

A few of these are destined to become pins or rings, too.  They are just too pretty to keep on display - they need to be worn and admired! : )  I'll post pics from that project soon, too!

How to make a Patriotic Wreath from Dollar Tree

After I took down the Easter Egg Wreath, I realized I didn't have anything cute to put on the door for summer!  So when I went to Dollar Tree yesterday, I kept an eye out for anything that would be good for summer ~ Memorial Day and July 4, especially!

So these are the three things I bought:

one wreath form, and two (different) 9 foot tinsel garlands.

This was the easiest wreath ever.  I just wrapped the larger (red, white and blue tinsel) garland tightly around the wreath.  Then I wrapped the blue garland with stars over that so the stars are standing up.  Super cute, super easy and super cheap! Only $3!  I just tucked the ends in when I started, and when I finished - no glue needed! 

Here it is on the door.  LoVe it!  (PS ~ took about 3 minutes to make, too ~ easiest wreath ever!)

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Monday Blog Hoppin'!

I'm so excited to be the Spotlight/Guest Host of the Week for the Making Friends Monday Blog Hop! If you are new here, please enter for one of seven prizes in the I love my mommy blog hop here on my site, then you can enter over 70 other giveaways in the hop!  You can find recipes here, like my Easy-Peasy BBQ Chicken Pizza , and crafts, too,  like this Dollar Store Dessert Stand!  Hope you will come back and check out what's new here in Atlanta! Thanks for stopping by!

How to make an Easter Wreath for under $10

Good morning y'all!  Are you seeing signs of Spring outside yet?  Here in Georgia, it's cold and windy again with rain coming back tomorrow, then 70 degree temps this weekend!! Crazy weather this year, but time marches on, so I'm decorating for Spring & Easter!

A few weeks ago, I was at Michaels and saw the most darling wreath.  It was covered in yellow feathers then dotted with Easter eggs and really, really cute.   The frugal decorator in me knew I could make it for less than the $30 price tag Michaels wanted...so I went on a scavenger hunt.  It took two trips to do it cheaply!
I bought 3 Craft Boas (they are next to the costume boas, wrapped on cards and cost $1.99 each), 3 picks of small glitter Easter eggs (99 cents each).  I went twice so I could use 2 of the 40% off coupons on 2 of the boas.

At home I found a wreath form (styrofoam) I bought at Dollar Tree a while back, and I cut a length of sheer pink ribbon.  I wrapped the boas (2 hot pink, 1 light pink) around and around the wreath.  I glued the ends down.  Then I cut the eggs so that each had about 1 1/2" of pick left to stick in the wreath.  Once it was done, I tied the ribbon around the top of the wreath and hung it on my wreath hanger.  Voila!!! Instant Easter decor and it's all the things I love about Easter decorating: bright, glittery and FUN!  Even better, it was very inexpensive - even with tax, I believe it was about $9 for everything! I absolutely love it.  I think it looks adorable with my teal front door!

What's hanging on your door this Spring?  Share a link ~ I want to see!!



   

Dollar Store Decorating ~ Ballard Designs Inspired Paint Chip Mosaic Art

Happy Wednesday!! I'm back with another super easy and super cheap Dollar Store decorating idea!
I was visiting blogs a few weeks ago when I was housebound with shingles, and I found this blog where Jennifer had made the most gorgeous artwork out of paint chips, inspired by a $279 Ballard Designs item!!

I have a small area in the family room that needed a pop of color. Our family room is painted a deep, rich brown called Library Pewter from Sherwin Williams, and it's like a cave in there.  I'm about ready for a lighter wall color, but this is what we have to work with now!

I already had a tacky Dollar Tree picture on canvas that I bought to paint over and use for something.  I also had sponge paint brushes from the dollar store, mod podge, burnt umber and gold acrylic paints, I just needed the paint chips.  When I finally got to go out of the house without worry of exposing someone to chicken pox, I met a friend at IHOP in Buford, and ran into Home Depot next door to grab a handful of paint chip cards in blues, golds and browns.  BUT....these weren't squares, they were rectangles. DARN IT!

When I got home, this is what I had to start my project with:

Dontcha love that bird picture? Still, a buck for a canvas is a deal!! I have a few more of these stuck away for other projects!!  You have to look at things and imagine their potential when you are shopping, whether at Goodwill, a thrift store, or Dollar Tree.

So to begin my artwork, I cut out 1" squares of the colors I liked the best - I chose golds, chocolate browns and robin's egg blue for the most part.  I got 3 squares per color.

First I painted the canvas with the burnt umber, and dabbed some gold around the edges of the canvas.  After it dried, I played around with the paint chip squares to get them in a pattern I liked.  I didn't have spray adhesive, which is what the tutorial suggests, so I used glue.  Next time I will start at the edges and work my way into the center, but this time I just worked from one side to the other.  The way I did it, the paint chips aren't perfectly lined up, but hey, live and learn!

After they were glued on and dry, I added a coat of burnt umber paint (I used what I had on hand - in the tutorial Jennifer used stain).  I wiped it off with a paper towel, then added a little more to some of the lighter chips to distress them a little more.  I wanted it to be dark enough to look good on the wall, but still pretty and colorful.  Once that dried, I added two coats of matte mod podge.  They added some funky texture to this piece.  Finally, I added a coat of gold metallic paint, which I also wiped off with a paper towel.  Here's my finished artwork ~

It's not perfect, but I LOVE it!! It's just the pop of color and texture I was looking for.  It's hard to see all of the different colors in this photo because my flash just highlighted the gold paint!  But you can see the texture and that's my favorite part of it!

Here is a shot of it without the flash - the colors aren't the same in real life, but it gives you a better picture of the distressing and the colors....

 I will be making a few more of these - one for Katie's bathroom, and maybe one for the master bedroom.  They are really easy to make, it just takes time cutting out the squares and waiting for it to dry! 

Check out Jennifer's blog for her step by step tutorial!! She did such a great job and I'm so happy I found her blog!!

Dollar Store Decorating ~ Valentine's Day Dessert Stand

I was at Dollar Tree last week scoping out some Valentine's Day decor and getting my usual things: salt & pepper grinders, pop-up foil sheets, drink mixes to add to bottled water, and batteries for the Wii remote.  While I was there, a solid black plate caught my eye. (can y'all believe I forgot to take a pic of the plate before I wrote all over it?!)  I had just purchased a gold paint pen at Michael's, and I knew I could jazz this plate up!  A few minutes later, I spied this candlestick holder on the candle aisle and I knew they were meant to be together!  It's gold with black splatters - perfect for what I had in mind now!

At home I wrote one of my favorite quotes  "Live Well, Laugh Often, Love Much" around the plate with the gold metallic paint pen.  At the bottom I added a bunch of doodled flowers and hearts.  Then I grabbed the brush-on super glue and here's the final result!

Plate  $1
Candlestick Holder $1
Glue $1
Paint Pen $1.99 before 40% off coupon at Michaels
Total spent:  under $5 for a super-cute dessert stand! It's going to get a lot of use here!!

Linking up with:
 Made by You Monday

An easy way to recycle a Christmas decoration!

So I was reading this post from Skip to My Lou, one of my fave blogs....where she shared how to use the plastic insert inside your Advent calendar to make cute gift tags.  Well, that got my gears to spinning, and I am saving ours to make more adorable Christmas chocolates!!   You can use melted chocolate chips, melt some squares of chocolate bark, or candy melts from Michael's.  Just melt in the microwave, pour into the plastic molds, refrigerate for a few minutes, then pop those cuties right out!!

I am baking/making Christmas treats today, and thought of a really cute way to use these.  Katie decided she hates the chocolates in our advent calendars so I took the insert out of hers, and filled the cavities with melted white chocolate.  I made some chocolate covered oreos, then topped them with the white chocolates from the advent calendar! What do you think? I love how they turned out!

~ Aimee